CF-What Matters Most
by Andorian Ice Princess-AIP
Summary: AU tension continues to grow between Casey and Severide that affect both their lives at work but it's put on hold when Casey is trapped at an industrial accident and Severide must push aside personal feelings to rescue him. Based parts from eppy 1.20 Ambition


**Title: What Matters Most**

 **Summary:** **AU** tension continues to grow between Casey and Severide that affect both their lives at work but it's put on hold when Casey is trapped at an industrial accident and Severide must push aside personal feelings to rescue him. Based parts from eppy 1.20 Ambition

 **Disclaimer:** Chicago Fire and its characters are the property of Dick Wolfe, NBC and….well sadly not me if so then my boys would have wonderful broments every single eppy!

 **A/N:** Found a small nugget in this past eppy and hope you all liked a bit of Casey!hurt and Severide!Comfort and it's AU b/c it borrows from the eppy but doesn't follow it's scripted path. So….enjoy

 _Note: Words in "double quotes and italics taken from the eppy"_

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The tension between them was palpable and everyone at Firehouse 51 could feel it thick as a wet blanket weighing them all down; Boden anxious to have his two Lieutenants work through some personal differences so that the friction could end and peace be restored once more.

But it's not just between Casey and Severide that the tension is rising, it's also between certain members of each team; Boden knowing that it'll take peace between Casey and Severide to put everyone right again. Peace in 51 is what matters most to Boden and he hopes it won't take something pretty drastic to make that happen.

A few seconds later a call comes in – industrial accident, minor fire, chemical hazards, one worker buried under a collapsed shelving unit.

Casey gets out of the front of Truck 81 and looks at Severide with a small frown; his mind wishing they could just make peace and talk about Heather and the few other things that was causing tension between them.

"Looks bad," Casey mutters as Severide merely offers a small grunt in agreement but pushes forward to the scene.

 _"Let's get the spreaders!" Casey calls out as Severide starts to shake his head._

 _"Forget the spreaders, getting the cutting torch in here to remove this beam!" Severide instructs Capp as Casey looks on in frustration, not wanting to argue the command but knowing it's not the best environment for it._

Severide looks over at Casey and can sense his anxiety but also knows that he'd never let personal feelings hinder his actions on the job so pauses for a few seconds to confirm his suspicions are right. _"Hey is there anything flammable in these boxes?" Severide asks the warehouse supervisor._

 _"No sir," he replies as Capp returns with the cutting torch._

"Here we go," Severide mutters as he kneels in close and fires up the torch; leaning in closer as he starts to cut. His mind is so preoccupied with the task at hand that he fails to see the little sparks flying around or what they were flying near or around.

Casey's growing anxiety about the chemical drums they are surrounded with and starts to look around; pulling away from his team and continuing to survey the area. His eyes finally fixate on a small, wet trail of chemicals and his mind urges him to follow them to their source.

"Oh no…" Casey mutters in an undertone as his eyes rest on an overturned chemical drum marked 'flammable'. He then notices that there are two more damaged drums that are propped up against some scaffolding and broken shelving units. _This isn't good…_ his mind states in a panic as his eyes widen when one of the sparks flies dangerously close to the sparkling stream of chemicals.

The next one…strikes it and Casey has only seconds to react.

 _"Severide! Kill the torch!"_

 _Severide looks up and yells "what?" just as the flame from the torch reaches the chemical pool and ignites it. It follows the trail of chemicals to the drums and explodes. In that moment, it's his eyes what widen on horror as he watches the world before his eyes explode into a brilliant burst of orange and yellow – his fellow lieutenant caught right in the middle._

 _"Casey!"_

The spark ignites the chemicals and Casey can only shield his face as the area around him is superheated in an instant; a blast of chemically heated air, picking him up and throwing him backward into the heap of scaffolding debris; the impact of his frame making the wood splinter as he crashes to the floor, all the debris raining down on him.

Casey's lips cry out as he feels a piece of the rebar pierce the upper part of his left shoulder, pinning him to one of the wooden pallets, his right arm instantly coming up to shield his face as bits of soot and debris rain down upon and around him. He hears Severide's voice calling his name echoing in his ear, but it's being rapidly drawn out by the pounding in his ears. His eyes sting from the fumes, making them water and instantly squeeze shut. His helmet knocks against another part of the scaffolding; his limp frame finally coming to rest.

"Casey!" Severide shouts again as he drops the torch; Capp scrambling to grab the superheated instrument before it can do more harm than it already has. Severide tries to scramble over the debris, heading toward his friend but instantly stumbling as someone tugs on the bottom of his jacket and pulling him back.

"Let go!"

"We need to put the fire out first!" Hermann tells him truth as Severide turns and casts as helpless gaze at Casey still trapped behind the wall of fire.

"Casey! Hold on!"

 _Kelly…don't turn on…the torch…chemicals…sparks…IT'S GOING TO BLOW!_

Casey's body jerks awake to the sound of his own voice calling out; ringing in his head and causing his body to slightly jump, his lungs coughing but his lips crying out with pain as the piece of rebar tears his skin further.

"Fire…put out…the fire," Casey's lips gasp as his right hand tries to rise and pull his left shoulder free, but he's unable. The wooden pallets that have fallen down over him, have fallen in such a way that he's unable to get himself free or get a clear view of what's going on.

He feels the small droplets sailing through the, meandering through the debris of pallets and splattering on his face; his skin actually reveling in the delight of the cool feeling as it starts to douse the superheated air. _Fire's out…help's on the way…just remain…_ "ahhhhhh"

"Casey!"

Severide doesn't waste one second once the last flame is put out by both teams, charging ahead to see how badly Casey had fared after the small explosion.

"Casey! Can you hear me?" He shouts as he trips on some charred debris and stumbles forward; his lips uttering a small curse as he hears Casey calling out for help in the near distance. "Hold on buddy!"

"Let's clear this area!" Boden shouts as he directs the teams to clear a path for the medics to get to Casey in case he wasn't able to get up and walk out on his own.

"Casey…" Severide utters with a small pant as he pushes himself back up and continues on his path. He spies Casey's boots and at first curses when he sees that his friend isn't moving and instantly fears that something has been pierced and they've lost a valuable member of their professional family.

"Casey! Can you hear me? Can you move…something," Severide huffs as he claws at some of the debris; his mind at first entertaining horrible thoughts, but then breathing a small sigh of relief as he hears Casey moan when he moves some debris that had been wedged against his left knee. "Hey…Matt…can you hear me?"

"Yes…trapped…not deaf," Casey manages with a small gasp as another piece of debris is lifted, this time off his chest, enabling him to breathe better.

"Where are…you hurt most?"

"Left shoulder…pierced."

"Oh damn…rebar I see it. Capp! We'll need cutters in here! Casey's been pierced!"

Casey's eyes slightly squint as the final piece of debris is removed, enabling him to see everything in full color focus.

"Next time…spreaders…"

Severide just offers Casey a slight smirk but his expression turns serious once again as he starts to examine the area around Casey's shoulder; wanting to see how easy it was going to be to free his friend. "Okay so…"

"AHH!" Casey yelps as Severide's gloved hands instantly pull back.

"Okay…okay…I uh…hold on a sec."

"Was a…knee jerk…just pull…it out," Casey gently pants.

"Okay I'll…"

"Kelly, I know…I just…you hafta pull it out."

"Can't…have to…" Severide mutters as he yanks off his glove and then starts to feel the area underneath Casey's impaled shoulder. "Okay…damn this isn't good. Okay so…we have a problem."

"Tell me," Casey pants as he watches Severide pull back, resting on his knees and looking down in concern.

"It's um…the bottom of the damn thing is uh…encased in cement so…"

"So you…have to lift…me and…"

"Yeah cut it off. And it's gonna hurt like hell," Severide tells him in truth. "Sorry."

"Just…hurry."

"What do we do?" Capp asks in haste.

"Okay this is what we hafta to."

Casey listens as Severide tells the team he's going to gently pull Casey forward and they have to move the pallet at the same time, holding him up and cutting away the majority of the pallet and then transporting him to Lakeshore with the rest of the rebar in his shoulder and right into surgery; it was the only way to ensure he wouldn't bleed out.

"Into the left shoulder."

"Okay got it," Severide tells Shay as he takes the large needle and then looks down at Casey with a heavy frown. "You're on board with this right?"

"Just do…what ya gotta do," Casey states with a small wheeze as Severide tries to push back the sleeve of his jacket as best he can to administer the shot of morphine to help with the pain Casey's about to experience when they pull him forward and then try to cut around the piece of rebar without doing too much damage to the wound.

"Okay…are we all ready!" Severide shouts; earning a chorus of affirmation in return.

"Ready," Casey replies with a small wince as his body gently jerks.

"Matt…"

"I know…it's going to…hurt like hell," Casey tosses back in sarcasm what Severide had told him earlier and then nods in agreement.

"Shay!"

"We're ready!"

Severide pulls off his gloves, telling Casey he'll have better gripping mobility to keep Casey steady while the rest of the teams scramble to free him.

"Now!"

Casey takes a deep breath and then grits his jaw hard, his right fist balling as he squeezes his eyes shut. It all seems to happen in painful slow motion; Severide gripping the front of his jacket and pulling back with all his might, Cruz behind him helping to hold Severide steady.

"AAAHHHHH!"

Casey's lips utter a painful cry as the piece of rebar jostles around, tearing the edges of the skin a little bit further.

"Hold him steady!" Capp shouts to Severide as he, Hermann and Otis all scramble to get as much of the pallet cut away before they transport Casey to the hospital.

"Matt…" Severide looks down as Casey's eyes flutter. "Matt!" He shouts; Casey's eyes snapping back open in haste. "Hey that's it…okay…just hold on a bit longer."

"Hurts…" Casey whispers as he his right hand digs into Severide's jacket; his eyes squeezing shut as the piece of rebar is jostled about once more. "Kelly…"

Severide hears the desperate cry in his ear and feels his heart starting to ache; his eyes watching the droplets of blood splattering onto the floor a few seconds after a few beads of nervous sweat and prays that his friend can hold on just a little bit longer. "Just a bit longer…almost there. Matt…"

Just a few ragged gasps are heard and Severide knows Casey's close to passing out from the pain; the morphine only able to dull the pain a little.

"Hurry up!"

"Just one more piece!" Herrmann shouts as he holds the board on one side, Mouch on the other and Cruz with the cutting torch; Capp and Mills ready to help take Casey from Severide once he's finally free.

"Oh…God…" Casey whispers as he clenches his teeth, sweat dripping down his neck and back; his forehead and of course his shoulder but there mixing with blood and bits of debris.

"HE'S CLEAR!" Herrmann shouts.

"Clear!" Severide utters almost breathlessly as Casey's frame nearly collapses into his grasp. But only half the hard part is over; with Casey already going into shock because of the blood loss, he knows transport will be just as crucial. "Where's the board!"

"Here!" Capp shouts as he carefully feeds it toward Severide's waiting arms.

"Okay Mills!" Severide calls out as the rest scramble to carefully get Casey onto the backboard that would then transport him to the waiting stretcher.

Casey's mind instantly jerks him back to his current painful reality as he's jostled about; each member instantly uttering a rushed apology but Casey knowing they aren't doing it on purpose to hurt him. Because of the nature of the injury his arm had to be supported separately as he had to lie back without pushing the piece of rebar further through his shoulder.

Severide looks down at Casey's pale, but placid expression and barks an order at the rest of the teams to "move faster". When he's finally cleared of the construction debris, he's taken to the stretcher where they try to get him to sit up; but from the smell of the fumes, the loss of blood and the sheer nature of the stressful situation – he collapses.

"Casey!" Severide shouts as he looks at Shay and Dawson, who frantically work to get Casey back to consciousness.

All of them literally hold their breaths while Dawson pumps on Casey's chest and Shay prepares to administer CPR. Casey's lungs slightly heave. His lips gasp and his eyes flutter.

"He's back!" Shay calls out as the frantic activity resumes once more; trying to get Casey somehow secured and his arm and shoulder padded for transport. "Kelly! Wrap this!" She directs; Severide instantly tearing off his gloves once more, taking the thick wad of padding and starting to wrap it around Casey's shoulder.

"Ahhhh!" Casey gasps as he looks up at his friend with a strained glance.

"Sorry buddy…."

"Surgeon's…hands," Casey retorts with a small grimace.

"Smart ass," Severide counters with a small huff. Herrmann and Capp each hold an end of the rebar so that Severide is able to wrap the padding around it as best he can. Casey would still end up with a nasty scar. "Done!"

"Okay move out!"

This direction comes from Boden after the oxygen mask is fitted over Casey's face and Shay gives Boden the 'okay' he can be moved. But NOW! Once again, it's all hands on deck as the stretcher is carefully lifted into the air and then hurried toward the waiting ambulance.

Casey's mind drifts in and out of consciousness; his blurry eyes trying to focus on something as his brain reminds him that he has fresh oxygen to help his lungs clear out the lingering carcinogens. His eyes close and his mind whisks him back in time, holding him in place as he watches with morbid fascination as the little bright sparks from the cutting torch start to float down toward he waiting trickle of chemicals.

The two explosive agents collide. The room goes bright for a few seconds. He holds his breath and closes his eyes – tight. Nothing happens for a few seconds. But just as he's about to exhale he's flung backward, the blast picking him up like a little rag doll and tossing him into the air and then backward onto a pile of debris.

Casey's lips utter a fresh gasp when the ambulance inadvertently hits a bump; Severide looking up in haste and then over at Shay with a weak glance.

"Matt, look at me," Shay instructs in a firm tone; Casey's head slowly turning and looking at her with a small nod. "He's still with us."

Severide shakes his head as he mutters something rather incoherent in an undertone and then looks at Casey's shoulder. They had cut away the jacket for packing and transport; the skin mottled with blood and debris and looking almost twice its size with all the padding. But as he fixates on the small rivet of now dried blood that had seeped under the thick padding his heart starts to race faster.

 _What if that beam pierced a major artery? What if there's nerve damage? What if he can't ever lift the same again? Or carry? Or do his job effectively?_ Without even really realizing what he's doing, Severide's fingers slowly reach up and gingerly touch his own shoulder; the one that both Shay and Casey had helped him recover from.

"He'll be fine. I think it went through mostly flesh. Don't panic just yet."

"Right," Severide huffs as he leans back against the bench; Casey hopped up on morphine and his mind trying NOT to think about what damage the rebar has done to his shoulder and possibly his career.

As soon as they reach Lakeshore, Casey is instantly whisked away into emergency surgery; Severide forced to wait behind, with only his nervous pacing and his anxiety to keep him company. He heads over to the doors to the ER OR and quietly slips inside, the doctor looking up just as he finishes the surgery; the anguished expression on Severide's face making it tough for him to send the worried squad leader back behind the doors.

"We're…finished."

"And?" Severide asks in anticipation.

"And for the most part he got off rather lucky; the piece of rebar sliced through the fleshy part of the shoulder; just below the clavicle, fracturing it. I'm sure it hurt like hell but it will heal. Six to eight weeks and maybe some rehabilitation to help him transition back to his line of work at the very end but I don't foresee any long term side effects."

"Oh…thank God," Severide whispers as he rubs his face and then nods at the doctor; looking past him to Casey who was still under thanks to the anesthetic.

"There were no other internal injuries but he'll be a bit groggy due to the morphine and atheistic for a few hours. You can…wait if you want and then make sure he gets home safe to rest."

"Thanks," Severide nods to the doctor who takes his leave to get Casey a few things to take home; a few pain killers, a recovery timeline and a care sheet. He watches as the nurse finishes up with the stiches, cleans the area, applies a protective pad and then prepares a sling.

He gives her a nod and then heads for a small chair beside Casey's bed. At the same time Boden and a few others had arrived; Shay hurrying to give them all the update. Boden then pulls away and heads for the ER OR room, pausing before he enters and looking through the glass and seeing Casey on the bed and Severide slumped in a chair; a silent vigil at his bedside.

Severide looks up to see Boden watching, pushes himself up off his chair and heads for his superior with a distressed gaze.

"How is?" Boden asks in hushed tone.

"He'll…uh be okay…he'll be okay Chief," Severide tells Boden in truth as Boden looks at him with a heavy frown. "Six to eight weeks…kinda typical with this kind of injury."

"Could have been worse…a lot worse," Boden reminds Severide. "Any burning from the chemicals?"

"A few patches here and there. Luckily his gear protected him from the worst of it. He uh…it was mostly from the end when we had to cut away the wood and remove the jacket to do it. Took in a few fumes but uh…nothing too major."

"That's good," Boden nods as he looks past Severide to Casey who offers a small moan, finally starting to come out of the anesthetic.

"No…cutting torch," Casey mutters dryly as Severide approaches with a guilty glance. Casey twists his head to look at his bandaged shoulder and then up at Boden with a weak expression. "Chief…"

"Had us all worried for a bit there," Boden states in truth as Casey's head slumps back onto his pillow.

"Worried myself as well."

"You know…if you wanted a new jacket you just had to ask," Boden tosses out lightly as Casey's expression softens. "I'll update the House and let you get some rest."

"Yeah…" Casey agrees as he watches Boden take his leave and then looks up at Severide with a heavy frown.

"I know…I heard when it was too late. Sorry," Severide states in haste; casting a somewhat remorseful – sheepish glances in Casey's direction. "Was um…"

"Distracted?" Casey interjects somewhat sourly.

"Not an excuse for getting someone hurt on the job," Severide huffs as he slumps down into the chair beside Casey's bed. "Man I'm…I'm sorry."

"Guess we've both been a bit distracted as of late."

"Still…not an excuse."

"No…it's not," Casey replies pointedly as Severide's lips draw into a thin line. "Make it up to me by driving me home?" He lightly questions; his head starting to pound.

"Yeah…course," Severide nods in haste as he quickly stands up and removes his jacket. The hospital had given him a disposable top to wear home and mindful of the wound and sling, Severide gently drapes his jacket around Casey's shoulders and then grips his right elbow and helps him stand up, giving him a few minutes to steady himself before he lets go. "You okay?"

"Yeah I…" Casey replies as he slightly falters, Severide's other hand shooting out and supporting his back. "A bit…dizzy."

"That's uh…normal. After all this," Severide replies in hesitation.

"Sure," Casey frowns as he leans back on the bed, looking up weakly. "Lying there…I just kept thinking…what the hell are we arguing about?"

Severide looks at him blankly, his countenance plunging into the abyss. "You're right…" he admits slowly. "All the tension and fighting…for what?"

"A misunderstanding…a…a whatever," Casey stammers with a heavy sigh. "Let's just…put it behind us."

"Agreed," Severide agrees firmly. "You want to stay here a bit longer?"

"No. I'm just a bit dizzy but the doc said there was no internal damage and no concussion so…I can go home…and rest," he gently grunts as he tries to pull the jacket over his shoulders a bit more. "Damn…gonna be sidelined for a while. Think a one armed firefighter would make it?"

"Well the department does want diversity," Severide chuckles dryly. "Ready to go?"

"Yeah. Got a funny taste in my mouth," he sighs as the doctor comes back with a small clear bag that he hands to Severide; giving Casey a few instructions on what to do as soon as he gets home. "Thanks," Casey nods as he tucks the small prescription slip into the bag in Severide's grip. "Wanna buy dinner?"

"Pizza or Chinese?"

"Pizza."

"Chicago," both add at once as they slowly head for the exit doors and reenter the waiting area. Casey is instantly swarmed by their waiting colleagues who pry him with a few questions and then of course wish him a speedy recovery.

Boden watches them slowly pull away from the excited group and head for the exit doors to go outside; the rest of Firehouse 51 slowly dispersing and going their own ways. He wouldn't have wished for this exact situation to be the one offered for them to make peace but in the end he knows it's what matters most – for the House and for them as friends and working professionals.

As they get into the cab, Severide gives the driver his address; Casey literally too exhausted to argue. In reality he doesn't want to; his body wanting nothing more than to have a bit of food and then find a warm, dark place to lie down and just go to sleep, thankful that his friend is there to look after him in case something were to go wrong. Much like Boden, he too didn't want this exact situation, with himself sidelined for so long, but the faster the tension continues to dissipate he knows that's all that matters. They had settled their tension, made a pact for peace and things would be better from now on; for them both.

As they near his apartment, Severide knows that Casey's stay with him and Shay won't just be an overnight thing; he'd be there for a few nights yet and then maybe he'd offer to stay at his home at least for the first few weeks until the bone was well on its way to being healed and he could help out his friend in any way he could. The tension was lifting and now it was time to be there for his friend…to rebuild their loyal bond and restore peace between them. And it would be rebuilt – stronger than ever.

That's…what matters most.

 **THE END!**

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 **A/N:** okay so hope you liked this little piece and please do review before you go and thanks so much!


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